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The Journal of Neuroscience, April 29, 2009, 29(17):5573-5586; doi:10.1523/JNEUROSCI.4438-08.2009

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Cellular/Molecular
How Multiple Conductances Determine Electrophysiological Properties in a Multicompartment Model

Adam L. Taylor,¹ Jean-Marc Goaillard,² and Eve Marder¹

¹Volen Center, Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts 02454, and ²Inserm U641 "Neurobiologie des canaux ioniques," Faculté de médecine-secteur nord, Université de la Méditerranée, 13344 Marseille Cedex 15, France

Correspondence should be addressed to Adam L. Taylor, Volen Center, Room 306, Brandeis University, MS 013, Waltham, MA 02454. Email: altaylor{at}brandeis.edu

Most neurons have large numbers of voltage- and time-dependent currents that contribute to their electrical firing patterns. Because these currents are nonlinear, it can be difficult to determine the role each current plays in determining how a neuron fires. The lateral pyloric (LP) neuron of the stomatogastric ganglion of decapod crustaceans has been studied extensively biophysically. We constructed 600,000 versions of a four-compartment model of the LP neuron and distributed 11 different currents into the compartments. From these, we selected 1300 models that match well the electrophysiological properties of the biological neuron. Interestingly, correlations that were seen in the expression of channel mRNA in biological studies were not found across the 1300 admissible LP neuron models, suggesting that the electrical phenotype does not require these correlations. We used cubic fits of the function from maximal conductances to a series of electrophysiological properties to ask which conductances predominantly influence input conductance, resting membrane potential, resting spike rate, phasing of activity in response to rhythmic inhibition, and several other properties. In all cases, multiple conductances contribute to the measured property, and the combinations of currents that strongly influence each property differ. These methods can be used to understand how multiple currents in any candidate neuron interact to determine the cell's electrophysiological behavior.

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Received Sept. 15, 2008; revised March 13, 2009; accepted March 24, 2009.

Correspondence should be addressed to Adam L. Taylor, Volen Center, Room 306, Brandeis University, MS 013, Waltham, MA 02454. Email: altaylor{at}brandeis.edu

This article has been cited by other articles:

				J. C. Tuthill Lessons from a Compartmental Model of a Drosophila Neuron J. Neurosci., September 30, 2009; 29(39): 12033 - 12034. [Full Text] [PDF]

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